Butter compartment for a refrigerator

ABSTRACT

A door-mounted storage device is provided for a refrigerator and includes a four-sided frame that can be anchored to a refrigerator door and a receptacle which is mounted within the frame. The frame is subdivided into a first frame part forming three sides of the frame and a second frame part that forms a fourth side of the frame and is connected to the first frame part so as to be pivotable about a longitudinal axis.

The present invention relates to a butter compartment for a refrigerator, in other words a compartment which is attached to a door of a refrigerator and can be sealed with a flap.

DE 196 33 975 A1 discloses door-mounted storage compartments for a refrigerator, which each comprise a four-sided frame that can be anchored to a refrigerator door, and a container which is mounted within the frame. The frame can be used with identical dimensions of container types with different heights, and a frame without a suspended container can also be used in order to secure tall refrigerated products, which stand in a container which is supported by a lower frame. This allows for a cost-effective manufacture of the door fixtures in a refrigerator.

One disadvantage with this design principle nevertheless consists in no suitable butter compartment previously being available in terms of appearance.

The present invention is to remedy this failing.

This object is achieved by a door-mounted storage compartment for a refrigerator comprising a four-sided frame that can be anchored to a refrigerator door and a receptacle, which is mounted within the frame, in which the frame is subdivided into a first frame part forming at least three sides of the frame and a second frame part which forms at least one section of a fourth side of the frame and is connected to the first frame part so as to be pivotable about a longitudinal axis.

This first frame part alone can represent a flap of the container, or a flap of the receptacle can be secured to the second frame part and is as a result pivotable.

Frames and receptacles can be manufactured from different materials, which differ in terms of their heat expansion coefficients. Metal such as aluminum or stainless steel can be used for the frame for instance, while the receptacle is made of plastic. In order to prevent parts of the door-mounted storage compartment from buckling due to different heat expansion coefficients, the flap and the frame part are preferably immobilized relative to one another in the direction of the longitudinal axis at one single point. This means that regions between the flap and frame part, which are at a distance from this single point, can be moved relative to one another due to different heat expansion coefficients without stresses resulting therefrom being able to develop therebetween.

For immobilization purposes, a pin in the flap preferably engages in a recess of the second frame part at said point.

This sole point in respect of the longitudinal axis is preferably arranged centrally so as to prevent significant displacements caused by heat expansion occurring at one end of the second frame part, and none or minimal displacements occurring at the opposite end.

The flap can preferably be latched onto the second frame part.

A form-fit connection is preferably provided between the container and the first frame part adjacent to the two free ends in each instance in order to prevent opposite free ends of the first frame part from bending apart under the load of the receptacle and thus no longer offering the receptacle a firm hold. Such a form-fit connection can be formed in particular by pins pushed into flush openings in the receptacle and first frame part, in particular expansion rivets.

To keep the manufacture of the frame simple, the first frame part is preferably assembled from an elongated strut and two brackets attached to the ends of the strut and forming two corners of the frame in each instance. This enables the strut to be manufactured from a continuous casting profile for instance, while the two brackets are formed for instance using plastic injection molding or aluminum die-casting. Different frame models can thus be easily manufactured in a manner adjusted to different widths of the door in each instance.

A further simplification results if the elongated strut and the second frame part have the same cross-sections. These can be manufactured in particular from the same continuous casting profile.

A recessed tray can be provided in a cover of the receptacle, in order also to enable secure storage of refrigerated products on the container.

Further features and advantages of the invention result from the description which follows of exemplary embodiments with reference to the appended Figures, in which;

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a refrigerator door with a butter compartment according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows an exploded top view onto the frame of the butter compartment;

FIG. 3 shows a vertical section through a support rail mounted in the refrigerator door as well as a side view of a butter compartment suspended on the support rail with a partially opened flap;

FIG. 4 shows a section through a corner of the butter compartment along a plane indicated in FIG. 1 with IV;

FIG. 5 shows a section through an upper edge region of the flap, latched onto a second frame part, and

FIG. 6 shows a horizontal section through a support rail countersunk into the door, on which the butter compartment and further refrigerated goods carriers are suspended.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective interior view of a refrigerator door 1. The refrigerator door is usually embodied as a hollow part filled with insulation material comprising a hard inner wall and outer wall. Two vertical grooves are countersunk into the inner wall, in which a support rail 2 is mounted in each instance, as is shown in detail for instance in FIG. 6 and is described in further detail.

Frames 3, 4 of an essentially rectangular design are anchored to the two support rails 2 at different heights. A square plastic container 5 which opens upwards is suspended on the lowest frame 3, by a circumferential lip of the container 5 resting on the topside of the frame 3. The container 5 and its frame 3 thus form a door-mounted storage device, which can be used in particular for accommodating bottles.

No container is suspended on a second upper frame 3, it is used to secure bottles positioned in the lower container 5 from toppling over.

A container 6, the height of which is less than that of container 4, is in turn suspended on the next highest frame 3.

The topmost frame 4 which is anchored to the door 1 is identical to the frame 3 in terms of its external design, it has a somewhat different structure with a first frame part 7, which forms the two narrow sides of the frame 4 and a longitudinal side facing the door 1 and is anchored to the support rail 2, and a second frame part 8, which forms the main part of a longitudinal side of the frame 4 facing away from the door 1, and is connected in a pivotable fashion to the first frame part 1 about a longitudinal axis 14.

The top view of FIG. 2 shows the structure of the frame 3, 4 in more detail. One of each of these frames 3, 4 includes two die-cast side parts 9, which are mirror symmetrical in respect of each other, upon which an adapter 10 is formed in each instance for fastening to the support rails 2. The side parts 9 are plug-connected to a longitudinal strut 13 and/or to the second frame part 8 by way of pins 11 and 12. To ensure the rotatability of the second frame part 9, the pins 12, which connect it to the side parts 9, are arranged cylindrically in the case of the frame 4 and on the axis 14. Contrary thereto, the pins 11 have a noncircular cross-section between the longitudinal struts 13 and the side parts 9, or several pins are provided in each instance between the longitudinal struts 13 and each side part 9 in order to ensure a torque-proof connection. With the frame 3, pins connect the side parts 9 in a torque-proof manner to two longitudinal struts.

The side parts 9, the longitudinal struts 13 and the second frame part 8 consist of stainless steel or preferably aluminum.

A container 15 suspended on the frame 4 takes the form of an essentially square box with an open longitudinal side which can be closed by a flap 16 fastened to the second frame part 8. As is shown in FIG. 1, a shallow recessed tray 7 is formed on the upper side of the container 15, said tray being used as an easily accessible shelf surface for various small items.

In its position shown as closed in FIG. 1, the flap 16 is flush with adjacent wall parts of the container 15. To enable a user-friendly opening, it is provided on its lower edge with a bar 18 shown in FIG. 3, said bar reaching below the base of the container 15 when the flap is in the closed position so that it can be easily gripped in order to lift the flap 16.

Similar to container 5, container 15 also has a lip 19 on its upper edge, this nevertheless only rests on the first frame part 7, and not however on the second frame part 8. As apparent in FIG. 4, openings 20, 21 are formed in the lip 19 and in the side parts 9 adjacent to the free ends of the side parts 9 supporting the second frame part 8 in each instance, into which openings an expansion rivet 22 is pushed, shown in a simplified manner. After passing through the openings 20, 21, the springy, divergent shaft parts 23 of the rivet shaft secure the expanded rivet 22. Due to the elastic effect of a rivet shaft, this ensures that the free ends of the side parts 9 do not bend apart over time due to different heat expansion coefficients of the metallic frame part 7 on the one hand and the container 15 formed from plastic on the other hand. The dimensional stability of the first frame part 7 and a permanently secure hold for the container 15 is thus ensured.

FIG. 5 shows a section through the second frame part 8 and the upper part of the flap 15 attached thereto. The frame part 8 realized as a continuous casting profile has two grooves 24, 25 on its interior facing the flap 16, which are undercut on their upper side in each instance.

A lip 26 formed on the upper edge of the flap 16 is provided with an upwardly directed hook 27 and, in the perspective in FIG. 5, can be inserted into the groove 24 obliquely from above. If after the hook 27 enters the groove 24, the flap is pivoted in the counter clockwise direction, the hook 27 engages into the undercut of the groove 24 and hooks 28 protruding from the flap 16 below the lip 26 meet an insertion bevel 29 of the groove 25, at which they are elastically hinged in order finally to engage into an undercut in the groove 25.

In order to immobilize the flap 16 on the frame part 8 also in the longitudinal direction thereof, a bore 30 indicated by dashed contours in FIG. 5 is formed centrally within the frame part 8. An individual pin 31 of the flap 16 engages in this bore 30. In the event of temperature fluctuations, the regions of the flap 16 and frame part 8 lying laterally to the pin 31 and the bore 30 move freely relative to one another. No internal stresses, which could lead to a deformation of the flap 16, are thus formed.

FIG. 6 shows a horizontal section through a support rail 2 and a part of the inner wall of the door 1, on which it is mounted countersunk into a groove. An external profile 40 of the support rail 6 here has two parallel side walls 41, which are connected to one another in an H-shape by way of a transverse bar 42. Openings 9 for receiving hooks of an adapter 10 (not shown in the Figure) are formed at regular intervals in the transverse bar 22. The transverse bar 42 forms the base surface of a groove 43 which is undercut and opens toward the interior. A second undercut groove 44 is provided on the side of the transverse bar 42 engaging in the door 1.

An input gap 45 in the groove 44 has such a width that a shaft, but not however a head of a fastening screw 50, can pass. Expansions 46, indicated in FIG. 6 by dashed boundary lines, are only created in places on the input gap 45, which are wide enough to also allow a screw head to pass. This enables the support rails 2 to be mounted to the door 1, by the screws 50 firstly being positioned on the door 1 in accordance with the expansions 46, then the rails 2 are inserted into the groove in the door, with the screw heads passing through the expansions 46 and finally then the support rail 2 in the groove is moved longitudinally so that the screw heads are captured in the groove 44.

A pair of opposing slots are formed in the two side walls 41, in which slots is guided in a vertically displaceably fashion a narrow slat 47. The slat 47 divides the interior of the groove 44 into a rear region accommodating the heads of the screws 50 and a front region, which accommodates the hooks of adapters 10 which pass through the openings 33.

The slat 47 is provided with a plurality of holes 48, which when the slat 47 is in a lowered position lie just below an opening 33 in the transverse bar 42 and are as a result not visible from the outside. The slat 47 can however be lifted into a position in which the holes 48 are flush with one of the openings 33 in each instance and through this opening 33 and the corresponding hole 48, the head of a rear positioned screw 50 is accessible for a tool, in order to fasten or detach the support rail 2 to/from the door 2. During normal use of the refrigerator, closed regions of the slat 47 lie in front of the screw 50 in each instance so that none are visible therefrom.

In respect of FIG. 3, the adapters 10 each include a cross-sectionally T-shaped guide member 34 with a transverse bar 35 resting externally against the support rails 2 and a rib protruding centrally from the transverse bar 35 and engaging in the undercut groove 43 of the support rail 2. Pins 37 protruding in the opposite directions are formed on an upper end of the rib 36, said pins each engaging in each instance in the undercuts 39 of the groove 43. A hook 38 protrudes from a lower end of the rib 36, said hook engaging in an opening 33 formed on a base surface of the groove 43.

In order to change the height of the frame 4, it is sufficient to pivot this in respect of FIG. 3 in the counterclockwise direction so that the two hooks 38 become free from the openings 33 of the two rails 2, while the pins 37 remain caught in the undercuts 39 of the grooves 43. If attention is paid during pivoting to ensure that at least the hooks 38 not leaving the grooves 43, it is not possible due to the rigid connection between the adapters 10 by way of the frame 4 to lift or lower one of the adapters 10 in a significantly more forceful manner than the other. Tilting of the frame 4 when changing the height thereof is as a result largely ruled out.

As shown in FIG. 3, the pins 37 can have a non-circular cross-section. It is conceivable for the pins 37 to be lengthened in the vertical direction to such a degree that they restrict the pivoting motion freedom of the unit from the frame 4 and support arms 10 to such a degree that the hooks 38 are no longer able to leave the grooves 23. For the same purpose, several pins arranged on the same side of the rib 36 or height-adjusted in respect of each other on opposite sides, as is shown in FIG. 6 by a dashed outline 37, are used. 

1-10. (canceled)
 11. A door-mounted storage compartment for a refrigerator, the door-mounted storage compartment comprising: a four-sided frame, the four-sided frame being securable to a refrigerator door; and a receptacle, the receptacle being mountable to the frame and the frame being subdivided into a first frame part forming at least three sides of the frame and a second frame part forming at least one section of a fourth side of the frame and connected to the first frame part so as to be pivotable about a longitudinal axis.
 12. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 11, wherein the receptacle includes a flap that is secured on the second frame part.
 13. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 12, wherein the flap and the second frame part are fixed relative to one another at least at one location along the longitudinal axis.
 14. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 13, wherein a pin of the flap engages in a recess of the second frame part at the one location.
 15. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 13, wherein the one location is centered along the longitudinal axis.
 16. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 11, wherein the flap can be latched onto the second frame part.
 17. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 11 and further comprising a form-fit connection between the receptacle and the first frame part adjacent to two free ends of the first frame part.
 18. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 11, wherein the first frame part is formed of an extended bar and two brackets attached to the ends of the bar with each bracket forming a respective one of two corners of the frame.
 19. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 18, wherein the extended bar and the second frame part have the same cross-section.
 20. The door-mounted storage compartment as claimed in claim 11 and further comprising a recessed tray formed in a cover of the receptacle. 